Tag Archives: Construction Worker Death

If you or someone you know was injured in a car accident near a construction zone, contact our Florida construction injury lawyers today.

Having a career in construction is a risky proposition. While some may say that construction workers assume the risk when they take the job, similar to football players that assume the risk when they strap on the pads, nevertheless it is a profession where every single day you go to work there is that small possibility that you may not come home.

As an Aventura lawyer that helps injured construction workers in Florida, frequently clients, or families of deceased clients, enter my office with tragic stories to tell relating to construction site accidents. Many times, the construction company is to blame for the injuries sustained by the Florida construction worker. Yet, as an attorney in South Florida, I find that sometimes the construction accident is unavoidable.

Just yesterday in Colorado, two construction workers were killed after a car traveling on a highway lost control. It is unclear as to the cause of this construction site car accident, but local authorities are only able to report that the driver of the vehicle was a 74 year-old man that lost control of his car while traveling through an intersection. Construction had been ongoing on the side of the roadway, which is precisely where the two workers had been located just before the car accident. According to reports, when the car lost control it careened off the highway and directly into the area where the men had been performing construction. The two workers died immediately upon impact.

While this accident remains under investigation, at this juncture it remains unclear whether any foul play is suspected on the part of the driver of the car or the construction company. Even if no fault can be placed on the shoulders of the construction company, this construction site car accident is a perfect example of the dangers of roadside construction.

Being a North Miami personal injury lawyer, I have come to realize that roadside construction work is perhaps the most dangerous type of construction to perform. You ultimately have two types of dangerous conditions — cars traveling on the roadway and the inherently dangerous task of construction work. A fatal car accident such as the one detailed above illustrates this very fact.

As a North Miami injury lawyer that helps victims of construction accidents on highways, it never ceases to amaze me how often tragedy strikes on the roadway. And every single time a person is injured in an accident, people are always shocked and wonder aloud how something like this could happen. More times than not, when a person is injured, whether it be a construction employee injured while working on a job site or some lay person injured near a construction site, usually someone did something wrong that led to the accident. The most recent tragedy occurred on a freeway in Santa Monica, California during the early morning hours when a construction worker was crushed and killed by a falling steel beam.

Highway construction had been ongoing since 2009, and according to reports, this construction site injury is the first major accident to occur. The steel beam that took the construction worker’s life weighed well over one ton — even more scary is that fifteen co-workers witnessed this horrific accident. Nevertheless, a transportation authority spokesperson assured the public that the construction would be ceased immediately until further safety tests and investigation is undertaken.

A key fact that must be noted is that this construction accident occurred during the nighttime/overnight shift hours, which certainly raises the question as to just how safe the working conditions are for construction being performed at night. Certainly, many factors come into play during the course of nighttime construction.

For one, the workers are operating on an extremely limited amount of sleep, which leads to fatigue and perhaps careless or negligent work. Also, inadequate resources may be available during nighttime construction, as opposed to work performed during daytime hours. Not to mention, when performing construction to roadways at night, the number one risk that construction workers take out with them every time they clock in is the possibility of a serious car accident at the construction site. Tough to see at night, poor lighting, failure to abide by the traffic signals — these factors all lead to accidents causing serious injury, and sometimes even death.

At this point, it remains unclear as to whether this construction site accident resulted from nighttime construction and the various dangerous factors that come along with it. However, you can be certain of one thing — it is definitely a more dangerous task to perform construction during nighttime hours.

If you or someone you know was injured in a construction site accident or a car accident at or near a construction area, please contact us today.

As a Florida construction site injury lawyer, I firmly believe that onsite construction work should only be performed by those physically and mentally equipped to handle the rigors of that line of work. Most, if not all, construction projects involve the use of heavy machinery and intense manual labor. The dangers of working on construction sites are always present, so the foreperson or supervising construction company has the responsibility of protecting their workers. Thus, if a construction company fails to supervise its site properly, and a worker is injured in Florida, then you can be sure that the injured construction worker will be hiring a personal injury lawyer for representation.

I bring up the subject of suitable construction workers for a project because this past Monday a 78-year old construction worker of Schomberg, Ontario (just north of Toronto) was killed after being caught in between a dump truck and a bulldozer. The Canadian Press reports that the construction worker was getting off of a bulldozer that he had been working on when a dump truck struck him — pinning him between the two and killing him. Local authorities state that the man was a part-time worker for the unidentified construction company and worked on an as-needed basis. A construction site injury lawyer has not been hired to represent the 78-year old as of yet, but I would suspect that representation for the worker’s death is forthcoming.

Under no circumstances am I asserting that senior citizens should be excluded from all construction work in general. However, construction companies should have specific standards of their own in place that qualify or disqualify certain individuals from highly dangerous construction tasks. Of course, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has safety standards that construction companies are required to follow. Yet, as a Florida construction injury lawyer, I strongly believe that each and every construction company should adopt its own site specific standards for a worker’s qualification to perform certain tasks.

Before allowing a construction worker to perform dangerous work, some factors that the employer should consider is: (1) age; (2) experience; or (3) physical strength required for the task. Ultimately, construction employees should not be blindly placed into a position without the proper experience, training, and physical attributes. As a South Florida lawyer who sues construction companies for employee injuries, I frequently address this issue of whether the construction employee was suited for the task he or she was performing at the time of the accident.

Going back to the 78-year old construction worker that was killed this past Monday, if I were hired to represent the man’s family in recovering damages, one of the first questions I would ask is “Why was this 78-year old man working with a bulldozer on this construction site?” Was the man properly trained? How long was he working for this construction company before being injured? Does this construction company have a history of accidents on its construction sites?

Construction site accident cases are highly complex and often involve months, if not years, of litigation. Hiring a construction site injury lawyer is very important so that you or someone you know recovers the maximum amount of damages that he or she is entitled, so Contact Us today if you or someone you know was injured in a construction accident.

As a South Florida construction site injury lawyer, I constantly stress that the most important aspect of a construction project is work site safety. 9 times out of 10 I find that construction site injuries can be prevented through proper job site management and supervision. Yet, injuries continue to occur — including fatalities.

In Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, a construction worker was killed after being struck by a dump truck. The 73-year old was working as a consultant for a project at Highland Middle School. Authorities report that the construction worker was on site when the truck accidentally backed over him. The chief of police stated that the 73-year old construction worker was standing behind the dump truck and the driver did not notice the man before reversing over him. According to a local resident, construction trucks working on this project fly down the road everyday — it is not shocking that a construction worker was injured and killed. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) is currently investigating this incident.

As I commented in my post from August 22, 2012, OSHA is a governmental agency responsible for the health, safety, and welfare of hundreds of thousands of construction workers throughout the country. A key tool utilized by OSHA to achieve its goal of ensuring a safe work environment are safety inspections conducted without advance notice. These construction site inspections are conducted by highly trained, highly sophisticated OSHA compliance officers. But how can OSHA possibly inspect the 7 million plus construction sites in this country? Inspection Priorities.

Naturally, OSHA strives to inspect the most hazardous and dangerous construction sites, thus placing a priority on those particular sites. Accordingly, OSHA identifies six situations which ultimately warrant an inspection: (1) Imminent Danger Situations; (2) Fatalities and catastrophes; (3) Complaints; (4) Referrals; (5) Follow-ups; and (6) Planned Investigations. Regardless of the reason for the inspection, OSHA requires its inspectors to do their homework on a particular site before going out for the inspection.

Prior to arrival at the construction site or job site, compliance officers must research the site’s inspection history using detailed processes and procedures so that they are fully prepared. Immediately upon arrival on the site, inspectors are required to convey their respective credentials to those on site. Additionally, the officer must inform the employer of the reason for the inspection and describe the scope of the inspection. Every inspector on site must be accompanied by a designated representative of the construction company that is the subject of the inspection. Essentially, the inspector and the company’s representative does a “walk around” throughout the entire construction site so that OSHA may assess all possible hazardous conditions on site. Upon completion of the “walk around,” the investigator holds a Closing Conference with the employer to discuss potential courses of action OSHA may take. Nevertheless, should OSHA decide to issue a citation, that determination must be made available to the employer no later than six months from the date of the violation.

This is one of the many examples of how OSHA attempts to protect construction workers from hazardous conditions on their job site. Ultimately, OSHA is in place to prevent construction site injuries from occurring. Unfortunately, we do not yet know if the Beaver Falls tragedy explained above that resulted in a construction site death was due to OSHA violations. What we do know is that OSHA will be sending out their inspectors to conduct a full investigation.

However, regardless of the results of the OSHA investigation, a lawsuit may quite possibly be forthcoming given the fact that this construction site accident involved a fatality.

If you or someone you know was injured in a construction site accident, please CONTACT US TODAY.